"Artemis?" Sol called, groaning as he buried his face in his pillow. Blindly reaching out, his hand scampered over the sheets but it returned empty. Opening one eye, he spied Artemis' side of the bed to be empty.

He groaned again as he rolled over onto his back while rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

He had refused to spend the night sleeping in the hospital after he had found out that Artemis wasn't allowed to spend the night with him. The doctor had been more than hesitant to heed his request but once he realised that Artemis was the best option for a speedy recovery.

The doctor had sighed and had left the room, returning within ten minutes with the Alpha of the Valour pack following closely behind.

Alpha Joshua James had stood tall and proud beside Sol's hospital bed, looking down at him with a distant look in his eye.

The doctor was speaking but neither of the Alpha's were paying any attention to his words.

It took him a few moments but Sol recognised the Alpha. He had visited his father many times while his pack was still alive and thriving. But that had been years ago and even if the Alpha hadn't changed much over the years, Sol had.

He was no longer the small pup who wanted anything but the Alpha position that he was destined for. Now, he was a lost wolf who had nothing but deep regrets regarding his past.

"Solomon Westbrook?" The eldest Alpha broke the silence, his voice thick with emotion as he looked down at the man whom he hadn't seen since he was a skinny teenager. "You're still alive."

Sol nodded. "Alpha James. Yes, I believe I am still alive." His words were dry and not as humorous as they had sounded in his head. He felt extremely uncomfortable with coming into contact with another vessel of his past and he didn't have Artemis by his side to calm him down.

He didn't even know where she had left to.

"I haven't seen you in over a decade." The other Alpha declared. "Call me Josh, son. We're practically family." He reached forward and placed a reassuring hand on Sol's shoulder, giving it a fatherly squeeze.

Sol nodded yet refused to audibly acknowledge his words.

It was really difficult seeing Alpha James – Josh after so many years. Josh reminded him too much of his own father, it was as simple as that.

Josh cleared his throat. "The doctor tells me you refuse to spend the night in the hospital."

"That's right."

The man chuckled at the young Alpha's bashfulness. "Any particular reason why not?"

Sol remained tight lipped.

"Very well then." Josh chuckled. "I've already given your mate access to one of the guest cottages. Feel free to stay in the pack for as long as you want."

Sol didn't bother correcting him when Josh assumed that Artemis was his mate. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me, son. Though I do wish that you had come to my pack sooner than you did." When Sol didn't reply, Josh sighed. "Well, don't be a stranger."

Sol nodded and watched as the other Alpha left. The doctor carried on speaking but once again, he didn't pay attention to any of what he was saying. He was sure that Artemis would tell him off later but for now, the words just seemed to be going through one ear and coming out another.

Seeing Alpha James had really given him a lot to think about, most of his thoughts revolving around his parents and just how much he missed them.

He wondered if they were proud of him.

Sol had struggled to get out of the hospital but had also refused any help from the warrior that Josh had sent to guide him to the cottage that he would be temporarily staying in.

It had been less painful to walk than he had thought it to be. He briefly remembered grunting out a 'thank you' as he finally reached the cottage.

Sol had headed into the cottage and immediately found Artemis making dinner for two. He had wanted to head straight up to bed but she had refused, making him sit at the kitchen counter while she fed him some chicken soup and bread. He had made another attempt to climb into bed but she had dragged him into the bathroom by the arm and stripped him down.

To his surprise, he was the one blushing as she pushed him into the bath, completely naked before continuing to wash his hair and body.

He definitely enjoyed it more than he should have.

He must have fallen asleep some time during the bath but awoke to find himself in bed, still naked.

Sol smiled and closed his eyes, moving over to the left so that could now bury his face in Artemis' pillow, revelling in the sweet scent of lavender. "Artemis?" He called out again, wondering where she was.

He listened to the sound of her feet patter against the wooden floor as she walked up the stairs to their shared bedroom. "What's wrong?" She asked as she walked into the room.

He shook his head and smiled. "Nothing."

She pouted as she leaned against the door. "So why did you start screaming my name as soon as you woke up?"

He smirked, stretching, aware that she was watching his every move. "I was just wondering where you were."

Artemis hummed before turning around with the intent of heading downstairs to the kitchen.

"Where are you going?"

She spared him a glance over his shoulder. "I need to finish making breakfast. Come join me." She beckoned him.

She didn't need to tell him twice.

Sol threw off the covers and got out of bed, grabbing a clean pair of boxers that she had laid out for him on the chest of drawers. His lips twitched up into a full-blown smirk as he watched her avert her gaze from him, clearly intimidated by his male organ.

"Come on." She called out to him again.

Sol grabbed the shirt that was also laid out for him, putting it on as he walked down the stairs closely behind her, his actions slow and wary, conscious of his wound.

His abdomen didn't hurt as much as it had the previous day rather, it was more of a dull ache that was easily forgotten about before he moved too swiftly which earned him a rude awakening to just how much it could hurt.

Breakfast was quiet.

Artemis had scrambled some eggs and put some bread in the toaster as well as produced a jug of freshly squeezed orange juice. She hadn't finished cooking so Sol had sat at the counter and watched her finish.

They both ate in silence and when Sol stood up to wash his plate, Artemis frowned and pushed him back down on his seat. He huffed audibly but she ignored him with a teasing smile before heading over to the sink to wash both their dishes.

Sol didn't enjoy playing the patient though he didn't mind it when she helped him out in the shower. This time he kept his boxers on and as soon as he was out from under the shower head, Artemis started patting him dry with the towel, very conscious of his wound.

Sol had high hopes that he would be as good as new by the next morning but for now, it seemed that he would just have to sit back and let her fawn over him.

He had on the edge of the bathtub, the towel next to him as she kneeled on the ground and changed his bandages. He hissed a lit when she cleaned up the dried blood a little, but otherwise he was fine.

"I want to go out for a run before lunch."

Artemis frowned though she remained focused a new bandage around his mid-section. "You're not running today."

"But-" he sighed. "I'm going to go for a walk then."

She nodded, using a pair of scissors he had not noticed before to cut the bandages before securing it. "Just make sure you're careful. It won't do you any good if you injure yourself further."

His lips twitched at the edges. "I know." He nodded, his smile only growing in size as she stared at him. "You can stop worrying about me, you know?"

"I can't," she shook her head, her eyes filled with a guilt that he hadn't noticed before. "You got hurt protecting me so I don't think I can stop worrying, not until you're completely better at least."

He reached out a hand and brushed away a stray lock away from her face. "I don't regret it, do you?"

Artemis huffed. "Of course, I don't regret it." Rolling her eyes, she stood up with the spare remaining roll of bandages and scissors in her hands. It was clear that her intension was to walk away but Sol had other plans.

Grabbing her around the waist, he pulled her back to him so that she was now standing between his legs, trapped there with his hands placed firmly on her hips. Artemis sighed and leaned into him, looking down. "I would do it again in a heartbeat if I had to, so don't think too much about it, okay?" He whispered to her, his words soft and encouraging, hoping to soothe both her fears and worries.

She nodded and smiled, brushing away the hair from his forehead with his free hand. "Just don't go pushing yourself too hard, okay?" She repeated, hoping that he would take heed to her words.

Sol nodded and allowed himself another moment before he let go. "I'll be back soon."

Artemis nodded. "I'm just going to take a shower."

Sol headed out of the bathroom so Artemis could take a shower. Looking through the doors, he pulled out some clothes for him to wear. Throwing them on, he walked down the stairs and headed out of the guest cabin, double checking that the front door was locked behind him.

He wasn't prepared to take any risks with her safety, especially since they were in a foreign pack. It didn't clam him down even in the slightest knowing that this was her old pack.

Sol welcomed the fresh air and the soft breeze as he walked into the forest. He wasn't sure how long he had been walking, but he had trailed off the path and found himself an empty clearing to sit.

He was aware that he would just be getting his clothes dirty again by sitting on the forest floor but in that moment, he didn't care. He just needed some time to himself.

Being pack in a pack had affected him more than he liked to let on.

With Clark's pack it was different. Being the Beta's best friend gave him some privileges that a normal pack member or even a visiting wolf usually wouldn't have. Sol's visits were always brief and he only came into contact with very few werewolves. His ideal was Clark and his little family as well as the Alpha on a few occasions.

It also helped that he was an Alpha even if he was without a pack.

But here, he didn't want everybody to know that he was an Alpha. He never did enjoy hearing the rumours of what everybody thought had happened to his pack and how he had managed to survive. It wasn't as bad in Clark's pack but that didn't mean that it would be the same here.

Sol had never intended for himself to ever be back in pack life, yet here he was, sitting on floor in the middle of their forest.

Being in the hospital surrounded by so many werewolves was a lot to bare. He was sure that the only reason he had not left the medical wing sooner was because he was in too much pain to move. He was also sure that Artemis would have lugged him back and strapped him back to the bed if he had left it.

Sol smiled.

Even through the dark tunnels of the past that his mind was travelling through, he smiled at the thought of Artemis.

Sighing, he bent his legs at the knees and picked some dirt off his knees.

He missed his father and his mother. He missed being a part of pack and sitting with his father in his office. His dad would be working on some paperwork, drawing up a new treaty or something of the sort while he would sit on the floor or the sofa playing with his many toys.

No matter how busy his dad may have been, he always had both the time and the patience to answer all of his many silly questions.

If he wasn't with his father, then he was with his mother, watching as she helped to train the warriors. His mother was a strong, intelligent woman and if she wasn't helping his father run the pack from the office, she was either helping train the warriors or in the kitchen, cooking food for all the pack with all the other volunteers.

Sol didn't have many friends but he had Clark. They were best friends and they did everything together. It didn't matter to the Alpha and Luna that Clark's parents held no title or that they were ordinary wolves, they were just glad to see their only son happy.

Life was swell and dandy in the Shadow Keeper's pack.

The only hindrance in Sol's life was the Alpha title that was to be passed to him as soon as he was of age. From a young age he had seen his parents worry over pack matters and stress over treaties and big events. Sure, it was fun at times but the burden of having a whole pack rely on him, of having everyone look to him for making decisions; it was too much for a young pup to handle.

And it didn't help that Sol was the only child.

He had been young and naïve then, not realising just how blessed he was to the son of an Alpha, to be given the loving and caring parents that he had. It seemed that the older he got, the less he wanted to be Alpha.

A few months before his pack had been burnt to the ground, Sol had made the decision that as soon as he was of age he would leave the pack and join the human world. His plane was to live amongst them, pretend as if he was one of them. He had even gone as far as tried to convince his parents to send him to the nearest human school just outside the pack but they had put their foot down and flat out refused.

Looking back at it now, it was absurd.

A wolf among humans, he chuckled lowly to himself. What a preposterous idea, he now thought to himself.

If he had known then just how blessed he truly was, he would have banished the idea. But the past is the past and there wasn't anything Sol could do to go back and change his mindset.

All he could do now is sit in the middle of a clearing in another packs forest and remember the past, remember all the wrong he had done.

He was sure that he had given his parents a heart attack the first he expressed his desire to live amongst humans. Perhaps if he had taken his training differently, or if he had listened more intently when his parents started taking him along to meetings the fate of his pack would have been different. Perhaps they would have had more of a chance of survival if Sol had actually wanted to be an Alpha.

He would have been more in touch with his wolf. He could have fought along side the pack warriors instead of hiding in the bunker like a coward.

If only he had made peace with the fate that he was blessed with, maybe his pack would still be alive today.

But there was nothing he could do to change the past.

He deserved to be punished for his sins.

-

You can wait for the next chapter which will be uploaded on 04/12/2019

OR

You can read the rest of the book, including bonus chapters, for free on Inkitt! Just search 'Solomon [COMPLETE]' or use this link: https://inkitt.app.link/RA__illuminating_

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Layla Knight

28.08.18